Second boil order issued in one day for French Settlement

FRENCH SETTLEMENT- Water officials here issued a larger boil order late Tuesday following another water line break.

The boil advisory was issued shortly before 9 p.m. and covers people north of Highway 444 to Colyell Bay. The warning will remain until water is tested and deemed safe by health officials.

Earlier Tuesday, a line broke and an advisory was issued for a smaller area but it included two schools. The line was repaired. The schools had to use bottled water for the day.

The water system in French Settlement suffers from frequent ruptures and boil advisories. System managers said Tuesday afternoon, lines that were put down in the 1960's have mysteriously been failing and they are working to replace faulty lines.

"We've had about ten breaks in a mile-and-a-half section in the last year-and-a-half" Billy Edrington with French Settlement Water Company said. "We think it's a bad section so we are going to replace it."

But, the fix won't be quick. Once funding is secured by the end of the month, work could take until April. Edrington said he expects it to finish earlier, though.

"We are ahead of schedule and will be done by the end of February," he said.***********Follow the publisher of this post on Twitter: @treyschmaltz